Process of incorporating engraved plates with electros in a. solid plate



Se lt'. 27 1927.

p w. J. MAGlNNls PROCESS-OF INCORPORATING E NG'RAVED PLATES WITH ELECTROS IN A SOLID PLATE lFiled Nov. v, 1924 L 1 TIJVIVII.

Patented Sept. 27, 1927.

WILLIAM J. MAGIN N I UNITED STAT ELECTRQTYPE COMPANY, OF PHILADE OF PENNSYLVANIA.

s, oF PHrLAnELrHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, AssrGNoR To yROYAL LPHTA, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION PROCESS OF INCORPORATIN G ENGRAVED PLATES WITH ELECTROS IN A SOLID PLATE.

Application led November My invention relates to a process of incorporating original engraved plates, photoengraved plates,

zinc etchings, electrotypes andA other separate printing plates in the same composite Vprinting-plate and to Acomte plates as thus constructed.

The main purpose of my invention is to supply a solid back to individual plates each forming less than the entire printing surface, which are mounted in a common composite printing plate.

A further purpose is to shave or form the par tial plate or plates to the thickness of an engraved plate or plates intended to form part of the same composite vprinting and then to mount the and engraved plate partial plate or plates plates upon 'a backing of uniform thickness to form the composite printing plate. n

A further purpose is topavoid the defects arising from the soldering together of parts of printed plates containing such printing plates,`as generally practiced at the present Further lica I by the time.

purposes will appear in the specition and in the claims.

have preferred to illustrate my invention but one form, selecting for the illustraproved to be practical, liable and inexpensive e time well illustrates principles involved.

Figure l is atop plan viewv showing a completed printing tion. n

Figures 2to 5 are sections to enl scale corresponding in position to lin plate illustrating my invenarged e 7 7 of Figure l, showing the backing and two of the plates separated from it and progressively illustrating, rious steps 1n my Figure 6 1s a section with the description vaprocess.

corresponding to line 7 7 of Figure l showing the-parts assembled for seating.v

Figure 7 is a section upon line 7- 7.

In the drawings similar numerals indicate like parts.

In the printing art it has been customary for lon ina years to use electrotype plates for all g runs in orderto save expensive origl engravedor photo-engraved plates from Y where it presents thousandths of an 7, 1924i.r serial No. 748,433.

the wear which would speedily destroy them and for thefurther purpose of making it possible to use a number of duplicate plates at the same time. cases wherethe run is to be short the customer desires that the original engraved plate or a photo-engraved plate be used ini stead. l

Y The engraved plate, photo-engraved plate', 60 generally referred to herein for convenience as a printing plate seldom if ever comprises the entire printing surface. Even the entire subject matter which the customer desires to display it requires the addition ofthe caption and. folio and in a great many cases it is used -in con-` nection with or is interspersed in other matter to be printed, so that frequently one or more printing plates of one character must be incorporated with one or more printing plates of another. character to form the complete printing plate. Sometimes half a dozen or more printing plates are so incorporated in one composite plate.

It has been customary to match up the edges of the several printing plates andl solder them together. Some printing plates, of which the electrotype is the most common example, are much thicker tlianothers, ofso which the original engraved plates form a very good example. My invention will therefore be illustrated by application to these two examples, it being understood that any thicker plate can be incorporated with any thinner plate or plates in the same manner, y cutting allthe thicker plates to the thickness ofthe thinnest plate.

p The more usual thickness of the. elect-rotype to be used on metal bases for letter press workl is one hundred and fifty-two inch (.l52) and the thickness of the lengraved plate has been, much less, more usually eitherV sixty-three thousandths of an inch (.063), or fortyeight thousandths of an inch (.O4l8). The thicknesses .152 and .063, respectively will be used in carrying the example through in this specification.

VIn the previous practice the engraved plate 106 or plates has or have been backed tothe electrotype thickness of one hundredjand fifty- I-Iowever, in some 55 n ing printing.

much increased damage to the press two thousandths of an inch (.152 and the backed engraved plate or plates and the .electrotype plate or plates have been soldered together to` make up the complete printing plate.

Because these composite edge-secured plates have been much thinner than the type high (.918) provided between the press and the printing suriace, these composite plates have been temporarily attached in use to or upon socalled patent blocks or bases ofV which a number are well known in the art so that the combined thickness oi the patent base or block and the composite plate uppn it has been approximately .918; thus treat# ing the coinpositefplate exactly as an elec! trotype plate o'l .152 thickness would be treated;

Y. It is diilicult to make the soldered'joint equal in strength to the body 01' the plate. Evenwhere a plate is weakened in one or more places by routing, the routed portions of the plate often stand up better than the soldered joints. The diiiiculty has been very by the presence ot tin `in the solder which tin is attacked bythe print-ing ink with consequent honeycombing and weakening oi' the solder.

IVithtlie best oi care in placing and supporting the composite plate in the press a slight tleinire of the plate takes place dur- 1 As a result of this the sharp llines ot division where the parte havebeen soldered yield tlrst to give the 'liexure and, where the runs ot thepress are long, the platesl frequently break. Sometimes theyV This requires that the plates be made over again and if the plates break in the press it often does serious and endangers thosev werkingen it.

" My invention is designed to overcome this diiliculty by treating all ,ot the plates alike,

i cutting down the electrotypes, here taken as typical ot tli e`.`thicker plates, to the thickness of the engraved pliates,here taken as typical of the thinner plates, and giving them a common and thereforea solid backingwhich can be and shall bekeptftree from lines of division. When intended for incorporation with engraved plates," electrotypes canT of course, be made initially oi standard engraved plate thickness.

d InV the! drawing a single complete `print-ing plate only is illustrated and I have selected onein which `the engraved part 10 ofthe complete plate isdiagonal and is flanged by diagonally placed electrot-yped matter.` a Conf y seqiently the. stiiieni'ngfand strength contri uted by the engraved plate is along irf` regular lines, exaggerating the bending tendency at its edges. Oli the parts 11, 12,13 and 14 here treated as electrotyped, and which could of course be of other or different characters, 13 isirregularin Ageneral outline and attached.

the under side of the backing;

and upper right sections of the plate on ope posite sides ot' the diagonal engraved parte.

VIn the best means of assemblage known to inethe backing 15 comprises a solid sheet ot electrotype material upon which Athe engraved and electrotype portions of the plate are to be placed and towhicli they aretobe Its thickness is lapproximately eighty-nine thousandths of an inch (.089). I shave the electrotypes from their normal thickness ot one hundred iiity-two thou sandths ci an inch-(152]) to a thickness of sixty-three thousandths of an inch (.O63) to agree with the thickness accepted as that of theengraved plate.

If their intended `usebe i known Vat the start, the electrotypes will be shaved initially to the commonA thickness. a

Gbviously plates of otherthicknesses can be accommodated and the intentionisto shave the thicker plates to the thickness yof the thinnest plate to be incorporated so that all ci' the plates used are oi the saine thickness andlthatlessthan the initial thickness of the" thicker plates. The backing` be selected to make up the dilerence.

will, or course, i

The plate 1 0 is` accordingly shown as ot i the same thicknessin all of the views but i the plate 13,.(as` well as each other electrotype used)` initially havingthe thickness indicated in Figure 2, is shaved at the back to the dottedliiie, making the other electroi types (as seeniin 13 in the other ligures') the saine thickness as the engraved plate 10. 4

' In Figure 3 the plates "are ready for assembly and, for convenience Vareshowiu'as in Figures 2, il and 5, in` position directly above theJ plate at which they are to be secured upon the backing 15. A

'lllie bachhg is then' coated 'with a `luX`i-ep` resented at '16 in Figure 4l.. AIjhave found iosin and' alcohol satisfactory but know Vthat there are various lother well'known fluxes which may be used. Among, "the, man-v 'lluxes i'osin and alcohol flux is one of a1 nuniing immediate use.

On top of the iluX I place one orV more` y p y .v ile bei' which have the advantage ofnot requin4 sheets of tin Jfoil 17 applied in Figure 5 and' the plates are distributed on top of the tin toil as seen `in Figure 6'. They'are `then sweated to thebaeking by theapplication of heat and slight" pressure,y the `heat being y applied trein` preferably but not necessarily The il'uX and sheet of tin jare `greatly exaggerated inV thick# ness in Figures et, 5 an The other electrotypes are shaved andfap-` Y plied asin the case `of 13'. andthe application being preferably concurrently therewith.

It is desirable to fasten the plates against laterallmovement before the sweating opera tion so as to avoid shifting ofthe plates andi y this Jiastening'can 'be done by punching them- Y with a sharp instrument so asA to punchl'out the benefit of my a portion at the back into the backing, by pinning them to the backing or by other convenient means. Pins 18 are shown in Figures 6 and 7 and the finished plate is seen in Figure 7, in which the exaggerated thicknesses of the flux and tin have been dropped and the plates and backing lie together.

My invention not only makes a stronger composite pla-te, increasing its life and making its use safer both as regards human life and damage to the press, but effects a very considerable saving in time in manufacture and can be carried out to a larger extent by machinery. Manufacture is made to depend less 'upon the skill of the operator, and to require less care by the operator. It can therefore be carried out reliably by Workmen less skilled in the art.

My invention thus provides a composite plate complete with backing for attachment to or mounting upon a patentblock or base and adapted for removal and replacement in its entirety from and to the block or base without readjustment or setting of the distances between the respective elements from which the printing surface is made up.

I recognize that 'in view of my disclosure others will be able to make changes in my process and plate, by which all or a part of invention may be secured without copying the form ofthe invention disclosed by me. It is therefore my purpose to include herein all such modifications and changes as come within the reasonable'spirit and scope of my invention. 1 Y

Having thus described my invention, what claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:-

l. The method of incorporating two printing plates having different standard thickness in the same composite printing plate adapted for attachment to a patent block or base, which consists in .forming the normally thicker plate to a. thiclness corresponding to the thickness of the thinner plate and permanently mounting mon backing having a thickness correspondboth plates upon a coming to the difference between the thickness of the thinner plate and for the composite printing plate.

2. The method of Vincorporating an engraved plate and an electrotype plate having approximately the thickness of the normal electrotype plate in a common composite printing plate which consists in shaving the electrotype plate to a reduced thickness as compared with that of the ultimate printing plate and soldering both plates upon a common backing whose thickness approximates that shaved from the electrotype plate.

3. The method of incorporating an engraved plate and an electrotype plate in the same printing plate of approximately electrotype thickness, which consists in giving the same thickness to the plates by shaving, placing them upon a common backing and sweating them into union with the backing.

t. A composite printing plate of thickness suitabie for attachment to a patent block or base comprisinga backing of uniform thickness, and a printing plate and an electrotype plate, each having the same thickness as the other and united to the backing.

5. A composite printing plate of thickness suitable for attachment to a. patent block or base comprising a backing free from soldered edge 'joints and an electrotypeV plate and anengraved plate rigidly united to the backing and having their printing surfaces at the same height from the backingn 6. A printing plate of thickness suitable for vattachment to a pate-nt block or base having a solid backing and printing surfaces permanently mounted thereon respectively electrotyped and engraved.

7. A printing plate of thickness suitable for attachment to a patent block or base comprising two printing plates having different recognized initial standard thicknesses and a solid backing underlying both and to which both are permanently united to give the same printing height.

l/VILLIAM J. MAGINNIS.

the thickness desired 

